Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Anything but a plain jane, Tony-winning actress Jane Krakowski gracefully made the transition from child performer to adult television star to Broadway stage star all before the age of 35. With her curly blonde hair and deep yet vesatile voice, the attractive teen first moved to the big screen as Cousin Vicki in the classic comedy, "National Lampoon's Vacation" (1983). Her subsequent screen outings were sporadic at best, and often in material which was inferior. After several years of honing her skills on the Broadway stage, however, Krakowski made a welcome return to the small screen in the late 1990s with her role as Elaine Vassal on the David E. Kelley hit dramedy, "Ally McBeal" (Fox, 1997-2002 ). Proving she was no one-hit wonder, Krakowski wowed critics with her portrayal of the vain late night TV sketch artist Jenna Maroney on Tina Fey’s critically acclaimed sitcom, “30 Rock” (NBC, 2006- ).hot sex scene.Born in Parsippany, NJ on Oct. 11, 1968, Jane Krakowski (nee Krajkowski) began acting at the age of 15. A gifted singer and dancer, Krakowski began studying ballet at age three; an effort which was applauded and supported by her parents who were both active in community theater. After being cast in an industrial fashion show in the early 1980s, Krakowski’s career picked up. Her big-screen debut, as Cousin Vicki, in “National Lampoon’s Vacation” led to other small roles in such films as “Fatal Attraction” (1987) and “Stepping Out” (1991), but it was her two-year, daytime Emmy-nominated stint as troubled teen Rebecca ‘T.R.’ Kendall on the long-running soap “Search for Tomorrow” (CBS, 1951-1986) for which she was most recognized at that time.

In the early 1980s, Krakowski unsuccessfully auditioned for a role in the Tommy Tune-directed "Nine," (1982). Though she lost that part, Krakowski instead landed the key role of Dinah the Dining Car in Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical, "Starlight Express" (1987). As one of only four performers to remain with the notoriously difficult show for its entire two-year run, Krakowski had to learn to sing and dance while performing on roller skates. When casting the musical "Grand Hotel," Tune remembered the petite singer-dancer and cast her as the secretary, Flaemchen – the role played by Joan Crawford in the 1932 film. Krakowski’s rendition of "I Want to Go to Hollywood" became a nightly showstopper and earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination for both Drama Desk and Tony awards. She has also landed featured roles in the Broadway revivals of "Company" (1995) and "Once Upon a Mattress" (1996).But it took her role as the ditzy office busybody Elaine Vassal on “Ally McBeal" for her to reach a wider audience. Krakowski managed to walk the fine line between being annoying and vulnerable, in her role as the meddlesome secretary. After “Ally McBeal” wrapped in 2002, Krakowski signed on to the comedy "Marci X," a film starring Lisa Kudrow and Damon Wayans about a Jewish-American Princess character who takes over a rap label and comes up against a spoiled and disrespectful hip-hop star. She then went on to a triumphant stint on Broadway, winning the 2003 Tony Award for her stunning and sultry portrayal of Carla in the musical "Nine," opposite Antonio Banderas. Her scintillating performance also earned the actress her first Drama Desk Award and the highly coveted Outer Critic's Award.

On the big screen, Krakowski appeared as one of a string of conquests in the life of Jude Law's womanizing title character in the 2004 remake of "Alfie. She was given the opportunity to show her stuff by singing and dancing on screen as the beguiling Ghost of Christmas Past in the NBC musical telepic version of Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" (2004), opposite Kelsey Grammer. She followed up her musical turn by giving a strong, sly performance as an ambitious local TV journalist searching for scandal in the dark indie comedy, "Pretty Persuasion" (2005). Returning to the stage in 2006, Krakowski scored another career triumph by winning the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for her role as Miss Adelaide in the London revival of "Guys and Dolls."In 2006, executives at NBC raised eyebrows when they hired Krakowski to replace comedienne Rachel Dratch for the pilot of “30 Rock,” the Golden Globe-winning sitcom created by and starring Tina Fey. Although the circumstances for Dratch’s firing were never made clear, the comedienne herself later stated that she was simply a victim of “creative re-tooling” and downplayed any rumors of backstage strife. All the better for Krakowski, who chewed the scenery as the spoiled star of the sitcom’s fictional “Girlie Show” late night comedy sketch show. Throughout the first three seasons, Krakowski proved to be an invaluable member of the show’s ensemble, further developing her character as an all-important, shameless attention-getter with hilariously transparent motives behind her every prima donna stunt. As part of the cast, Krakowski shared an Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble Award from the Screen Actor’s Guild – something her “30 Rock” character never would have settled for – in 2008. The following year, she earned an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy – the first of her career.

* 1972 At age three, began taking dance lessons
* 1977 Cast in an industrial fashion show at age eight
* 1983 Debut film role, as Cousin Vicki in National Lampoon s Vacation
* 1984 First major television role, as Theresa Rebecca (T.R.) Kendall on the soap opera Search for Tomorrow (NBC)
* 1987 Made Broadway debut as Dinah the Dining Car in the musical Starlight Express ; stayed with the show for its entire run
* 1989 Cast in the Broadway musical Grand Hotel as the typist and would-be-film-star Flaemmchen; earned a Tony nomination
* 1991 Co-starred with Liza Minnelli in Stepping Out
* 1993 Appeared in the CBS miniseries Queen
* 1995 Played the ditzy flight attendant April in the Broadway revival of Company
* 1996 Starred alongside Sarah Jessica Parker in the Broadway revival of Once Upon a Matress
* 1997 Breakthrough role as office assistant Elaine Vassal on the FOX series Ally McBeal
* 1999 Had featured role in Doug Liman s Go
* 2000 Cast as Betty Rubble in The Flinstones in Viva Rock Vegas
* 2000 Portrayed Mabel Normand in a concert staging of Mack and Mabel
* 2002 Cast in the comedy Marci X alongside Lisa Kudrow and Damon Wayans
* 2003 Won a Tony starring in the Broadway revival of Nine
* 2004 Cast opposite Jude Law in Alfie a remake of the 1966 film which starred Michael Caine
* 2005 Cast in the dark comedy Pretty Persuasion opposite Evan Rachel Wood and Ron Livingston; screened at Sundance
* 2006 Plays a cast member of a fictional late night sketch show on the NBC sitcom, 30 Rock ; earned an Emmy nomination in 2009 for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
* 2008 Cast in the Encores! production of Damn Yankee directed by John Rando at City Center
* 2009 Cast as Corma Limbs in the feature adaptation of Cirque du Freak: The Vampire s Assistant
* Auditioned for a role in Tommy Tune s Nine ; was not cast
* Raised in Parsippany, New Jersey